Playboy Enterprises Inc has agreed to be taken private by founder Hugh Hefner, after he raised his bid by 12 percent, ending months of negotiations.

Icon Acquisition Holdings L.P., a limited partnership controlled by Hugh Hefner, offered $6.15 per share for Playboy, valuing the company at about $180 million, according to Reuters data.

Hefner, who founded the company synonymous with bunny ears and centerfolds, owns around 70 percent of Playboy's Class A common stock and 28 percent of its Class B stock.

In July, Hefner made its first offer to buy the company at $5.50 per share starting a bidding war that saw FriendFinder Networks, owner of Penthouse magazine, offering $6.25 per share [nN15194116].

A company synonymous with bunny ears and centerfolds, Playboy has been struggling to put its business back on course as circulation and advertising revenues decline with people flocking to the Internet for free pornography.

Shares of the company were trading up 92 cents at $6.12 in trading before the bell on Monday on the New York Stock Exchange.

(Reporting by Supantha Mukherjee in Bangalore; Editing by Jarshad Kakkrakandy)